Before work can commence on the East State Street reconstruction project in Geneva, several utility companies must first relocate underground infrastructure.
The Illinois Department of Transportation awarded a contract in the spring to R.W. Dunteman to rebuild East State Street (Route 38) from Glengarry Drive to the Fox River. The multi-year project encompasses roadway widening, streetscape enhancements, bike lanes, traffic signal upgrades, new street lighting, and water main/storm drainage infrastructure improvements.
Construction will not begin until utility relocations are complete, a process that could take six to eight months, potentially longer. Utility work will require both intermittent short-term and possibly long-term traffic lane closures along various stretches of the highway in 2025 and early 2026.
AT&T is scheduled to begin relocating utilities the week of Aug. 4 near Nebraska Street. Eastbound traffic will be reduced to one lane from Kane to Woodlawn streets for about one week. Electronic message boards have been placed along East State Street this week to notify drivers of the upcoming road work, which is weather-dependent.
AT&T also will relocate underground utilities near the following intersections (with estimated construction timeframes):
- Harrison Street – two to three weeks
- Sandholm Street – two weeks
- Crissey Avenue to Kansas Street – three months
- Miscellaneous locations – one to two months
Nicor also must complete utility relocations and is working with IDOT to develop a construction plan. Other companies may need to perform similar work in the coming months.
While the City is working with the utility companies to obtain work schedules and associated lane closures, construction may occur with little to no advanced notice. Residents can subscribe to receive road construction updates, which the City will distribute as information becomes available.
The full East State Street reconstruction project is now tentatively expected to start in spring 2026 and be completed in late 2027, with punch list items to be finished the following year. The timeline is dependent on how quickly the utility relocations are resolved.